Birthday

Ugh, I’m over the hill

Marty

Yes, it’s true. I’m over the hill. You obviously know 40 is coming but there is something about these milestone ages that make them a little bit harder. Julie really made the weekend great which made the whole thing fly by (no pun intended).

I intended to lay low and just chill all weekend but then Julie surprised me by inviting a couple of buddies up for the weekend. Julie had a bunch of fun things planned for the day. We started off with some indoor sky diving at iFly, made a brief stop at a brewery, watched the Iowa game at dinner, slung some axes at an ax-throwing place, and then wrapped up the night at a few bars in Naperville. Overall a super awesome surprise for such an old guy like me.

The icing on the cake was wrapping up the weekend with dinner and presents with Julie, Carter, and Emery. The best part of getting older is sharing time with them and seeing the kids grow up.

Hot Weekend

Marty

Even though it was 100+ outside, it did not keep us indoors. Carter kicked off the weekend with a baseball game Saturday morning, followed by his birthday party in the afternoon. On Sunday, Carter and Emery had a blast shooting some rockets off with the Boy Scouts.

Goooooooooaaaaaaaalllllll

Marty

It was a little early in the month but we had a nice annual birthday dinner with the Stubler’s to celebrate Grandpa Stubler and me getting older.

Saturday, started off in the best way with Carter scoring his very first game gooooaaallll in soccer. I’m so proud of the kid, he has really been working his butt off so it was great to see it finally pay off.

There was a little game (the Super Bowl) that helped us wrap up the weekend. Unfortunately, our party got canceled, but made our own party at home and had a blast watching it as a family on the big screen.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Emery!

Marty

Emery is officially three years old. She is such a little miracle, that it is hard to believe all of the craziness that we (mostly Julie) had to go through to bring her into this world. It’s been such a gift to be her dad, and I have loved every minute of it. Onward we go! I think its time we try for another – psych! 🙂 (Just wanted to see who actually reads this)

P.S. She had a gymnastics party and a ballerina theme.

Emery is 2

Marty

Emery is growing up so fast. She is now navigating the house so well that we took down the baby gates. It is nice to be able to move around the house without having to jump over obstacles. The other thing that she is getting good at is using the big girl potty. It’s just a matter of time before we pull the trigger and quit diapers cold-turkey.

Emery’s vocabulary is growing too. Her new favorite thing to say is “I do it.” From putting on her coat to picking out her own cup, she always needs to be doing it herself. Although she can’t do it all, she loves having ponytails in and her boots on. Love her!

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Comcast Cares

Marty

The cold rainy weather didn’t keep a 100 volunteers from coming out for Comcast Cares Day this year. My family decided to stay home, but I braved the weather to help cleanup and mulch a forest preserve in Naperville.

On Sunday, Carter went to a birthday party for Nathan, a friend from school. It was at Players indoor sports center where the kids played a bunch of great games like tag and soccer…. and of course had yummy pizza and cake.

Emery’s Birthday Party

Marty
    Emery had a great winter ONEderland birthday celebration. She was the center of attention and really seemed to enjoy herself. She loved her very own special carrot cake smash cupcake. Carter eagerly helped and blew out the candle for her too! She was also very fortunate to receive many nice gifts. Thanks to all of the friends and family who came to celebrate, it really means a lot to us.

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    Also, here is a video I made for the party. It captures moments from Emery’s first year.

Happy Birthday Emery!

Marty

One year ago, after a long struggle, we were finally blessed with our baby girl.

Emery is so proud of herself, you can see it in her face after she does something new. She now walks, hugs, climbs, and sometimes even wrestles with me. She is already off of formula and very soon moving off of bottles. What a big girl…

Happy first birthday, Emery! Your mom, brother and I love you so much and are so thankful you’ve made our family perfectly complete.

emery and momma2

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Camping and Birthday Parties

Marty

We had another full weekend! Saturday morning started with our usual trip to the Farmer’s Marker in Downtown Naperville. After that, Carter and Dad went to t-ball, while Emery and mom went home to prepare for her 6 month photoshoot with LiliBean Photo. Emery did so great and smiled a ton!

As Emery was getting her pictures taken, Carter was getting ready for his neighbor buddy Blake’s superhero birthday party. Happy third Birthday to Blake! later that evening, Carter and dad set up a tent in the back yard and “camped.” Blake came back over and both boys brought their sleeping bags and played in the tent together and had a great time.

Then, it was more pizza and cake for Carter on Sunday. Carter and mom went to Airtastic in Aurora, to celebrate his friend from school Sahana’s, fourth birthday. airtastic We wrapped up the weekend with a trip to the clubhouse for swim and sand castle building. It was a bit chilly and windy, but didn’t stop Carter and mom from jumping right in!

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